Growth Factor News and Research

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Mice offer clues to the roots of human resilience

When faced with adversity, some people succumb to debilitating psychological diseases including posttraumatic stress disorder and depression, while others are able to remain remarkably optimistic.

19 Oct 2007

Ability to cope with stress, depression linked to variations in brain structure and function

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found in mice that the ability or inability to cope with stress is linked to specific differences in the way brain cells communicate with each other.

19 Oct 2007

New knowledge about basic cancer biology

Merging technological innovations and new knowledge about basic cancer biology, cancer researchers now target specific molecules involved in critical chemical pathways of cancerous cells.

17 Oct 2007

Researchers specifically manipulate tumor angiogenesis gene

Angiogenesis is a common process that is essential for tumor growth beyond 2 mm. Although numerous growth factors are involved, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), particularly VEGF-A, has been shown to play an important role in tumor angiogenesis.

16 Oct 2007

Researchers working on the development of drugs to limit neuronal death

Neurons die en masse when the spinal cord is injured or when a person suffers a stroke. Researchers of the Max Delbrueck Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch, Germany, and of Aarhus University, Denmark, have unraveled the molecular mechanism which causes the death not only of damaged neurons, but also of healthy nerve cells.

16 Oct 2007

Research shows how stem cells decide to become either skeletal or smooth muscle

Researchers have discovered a key protein that controls how stem cells "choose" to become either skeletal muscle cells that move limbs, or smooth muscle cells that support blood vessels, according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

11 Oct 2007

Obese people six times more likely to develop oesophageal cancer

Rates of oesophageal cancer have been rising rapidly, and in some countries, they have risen faster than those of every other major cancer, say the authors.

10 Oct 2007

Better understanding of environmental influences on the aging process of stem cells

A stem cells' immediate neighborhood, a specialized environment also known as the stem cell niche, provides crucial support needed for stem cell maintenance.

10 Oct 2007

Rapamycin and Gleevec reverses effects of portal hypertension in rats

A combined treatment with rapamycin and Gleevec might reverse the effects of portal hypertension in patients with chronic liver disease, according to the results of a new study on rats.

2 Oct 2007

Tree bark compound gambogic amide stimulates growth, survival of brain cells

Researchers have identified a compound in tree bark that mimics the chemical reactions of a naturally occurring molecule in the brain responsible for stimulating neuronal cell signaling.

2 Oct 2007

Novel strategy to tackle acute myelogenous leukemia

A novel strategy to hopefully beat into oblivion one of the most aggressive forms of acute myelogenous leukemia combines the strengths of some of the newest leukemia agents, researchers say.

25 Sep 2007

Trop-2 new target for anti-tumour therapy in cancer

Italian scientists announced (Monday September 24) that they have found a new and promising target for anti-tumour therapy in cancer.

25 Sep 2007

Nerve growth factor positively related with liver cancer - potential therapy target

Nerve growth factor (NGF), as the name says, is an essential peptide factor for the growth and differentiation of neuronal cells.

20 Sep 2007

Breakthrough in cardiovascular research

Cholesterol contributes to atherosclerosis - a condition that greatly increases the risk of heart attack and stroke - by suppressing the activity of a key protein that protects the heart and blood vessels, researchers at the Saint Louis University School of Medicine have found.

18 Sep 2007

Study suggests brain tumors need treatment with multiple 'targeted' drugs

Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have shown that several, rather than just one, cell-growth switches are simultaneously overactive in many brain tumors and other solid tumors, explaining why treatment with just a single "targeted" switch-blocking drug often yields disappointing results.

13 Sep 2007

New technique detects how proteins undergo changes inside a cell

In the September issue of Molecular & Cellular Proteomics , scientists describe a new technique that can detect how proteins undergo changes inside a cell.

13 Sep 2007

New insight into breast cancer development in high-risk women

Physicians who treat women with the breast cancer susceptibility gene BRCA1 often remove their patients' ovaries to eliminate the source of estrogen they believe fuels cancer growth.

12 Sep 2007

Mechanism identified that plays a critical role in multiple myeloma cell cycle and survival

Researchers at Emory University's Winship Cancer Institute are the first to discover a mechanism that plays a critical role in the multiple myeloma cell cycle and survival.

11 Sep 2007

Fat: An active player in the regulation of many processes in health and disease

Why should we be interested in doing obesity-related research? Emphasis is put on this type of research simply because of the fact that the epidemiological data and predictions are alarming. Worldwide it is estimated that one person in every eight is overweight and more than 300 millions are obese

3 Sep 2007

FDA approves Somatuline Depot to treat acromegaly

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Somatuline Depot (lanreotide acetate injection) for the treatment of acromegaly, a rare and potentially life threatening disease in adults caused by abnormal secretion of growth hormone (GH), commonly from a benign tumor located in the pituitary gland located in the brain.

30 Aug 2007